KCPT

Stories by KCPT

Caregivers in KC: Asen’s Story

Born with a disability at birth, and with no one left to help, Asen’s family turns to Lakemary Center in Paola, Kansas. Lakemary provides educational, mental, behavioral health, and social services to children and adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities. We follow Asen’s approach in the classroom and interactions with his teachers and coaches, giving him the tools…

(L-R) Christina Hill and her grandmother, Lucy Wilkerson, pose for a photo with Christina’s kids, Hunter Hill Harris and Summer Hill Harris, at Lucy’s assisted living home in Grain Valley, Missouri. (Chase Castor | Flatland)

Caregiving Squeezes Households Between Young and Old 

Melissa Johnson knows her life is hardly unique. The Oak Grove, Missouri, woman cares for her infirm 72-year-old mother, who lives in her own home nearby.  She calls her mother daily. She brings dinner to her several times a week.  Johnson, who coordinates care with her aunt, a team of therapists, and a nurse, is…

Friday marks the 50 years since the release of "Jaws," the film that made moviegoers terrified to enter the water. Johnson County Park & Rec is showing the film Saturday night at Shawnee Mission Park. (Flikr)

Nick’s Picks | Juneteenth, Sharks, Dragons and More …

World Cup Countdown Party Last week, we marked the one-year countdown to the World Cup. Now, get ready for the big party. Kansas City’s host committee is planning a “Countdown to the World Cup Kick-Off Event” on Sunday at the Aspiria Campus in Overland Park. That’s the former Sprint headquarters site near 119th and Metcalf….

Members of the band Saint Motel perform at Boulevardia.

Nick’s Picks | Soccer, Caregiving, Boulevardia and More …

Scramble to Save Stadiums A special legislative session aimed at keeping the Chiefs and Royals in Missouri enters its second week today. The Missouri Senate has voted to cover up to 50% of the costs of new or improved stadiums for the teams, but the measure has yet to be taken up by the Missouri…

Police car lights.

Nick’s Picks | Stadium Redux, KCK Mayor, Pride and more …

Special Session on Stadiums Starts Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe has told state lawmakers to cancel family vacations and head back to Jefferson City today for a last-ditch effort to save the Chiefs and Royals. The special session begins at noon. It comes just days after the Royals acknowledged buying the mortgage on the old Sprint…

Robert Franke stands for a photo with a map and a brush for clearing gravestones at Forest Hill Cemetery, off Troost in Kansas City, Missouri. Franke gathers users’ search requests at findagrave.com to generate a list of names and info he uses to locate the grave sites. (Chase Castor | Flatland

Volunteer ‘Gravers’ Search For Plots After Online Inquiries

Six years ago, Robert Franke’s heart doctor suggested he get more exercise. Some would have received that news and headed to the golf course or pickleball court. Franke headed for the closest cemetery. There he pursued his new calling as a Find a Grave volunteer — or “graver,” as some of them refer to themselves…

Morning sun peeks over the roof of the Panasonic EV Battery Facility in DeSoto, Kansas, on Jan. 17, 2025. (Chase Castor | Flatland)

World War II Left Lasting Economic Imprint in the Region

Harry S. Truman would scarcely recognize today’s technological wizardry and business advancements, 80 years after his instrumental role in the Allies’ victory in World War II. But the former U.S. senator and president from Independence, Missouri, helped lay the groundwork for some of the pillars still fueling the Kansas City-area economy, including components of a…

The state doesn’t have caseload data, but it did say it regularly meets timely investigation metrics. (Fernando Salazar/The Beacon)

One elder abuse investigator has 70 cases. Kansas doesn’t say how swamped other caseworkers are

Stacy Crow made sure to check the outdoor cameras at Shirley Crow’s house in Wichita every now and again. Stacy lived five hours away from her 85-year-old mother-in-law, and the video check-ins were necessary because Shirley had Alzheimer’s disease and needed regular medication. “We did like to just see her out on her porch drinking…

On the shores of Lake Pomme de Terre in rural Pittsburg, Missouri, the Hermitage Spiritual Retreat Center offers visitors the quiet and peace they seek away from a divisive, non-stop world. (Bill Tammeus | Flatland)

Retreat Centers Serve as Oases from Stressful Times

Stress — including that caused by our nation’s current political turmoil — is such a common experience that people have devised many ways to describe it, including the simple exclamation “I’m stressed out.” There’s also the phrase you’re likely to hear only in parts of New England: “I’m right out straight.” Sometimes people under age…

Fireworks during "Celebration at the Station".

Nick’s Picks | Fireworks, Funeral, FIFA and More …

Celebration at the Station There’s a lot to like about this week. We’ve got a three-day holiday weekend to look forward to. Memorial Day is Monday. Here at the TV station, we’re prepping for our biggest show of the year, Celebration at the Station. It’s all hands on deck for our production crews as we…